Praha, Okay I Love Ya

Day 13: Prague, Czech Republic

The last day of the Central Europe tour. Wah?

After discovering that Prague was actually much nicer on the western side of the Vltava River (Mala Strana) vs. the eastern side (Old Town and shopping areas), my mom and I spent our entire last day meandering through some of the most beautiful gardens that we've ever seen... a big thank you to the weather gods for the abundant sunshine! It was the most relaxing day out of the entire trip.

The Wallenstein Palace gardens had these tall shrubs that were a bit labyrinth-like, which then opened up to the Senate building and this pond that included a nice view of the Royal Palace on the hill. It looked like it had good feng shui, haha. My mom and I trailed this albino peacock for a good 15 minutes, only to find that he was trailing an albino peahen.

Then, I took my mom to a park named Petrin Hill, which was so steeply sloped that most people had to take a cable car up to the very top. As we clunked along, I noticed that there was a cafe that sat on the middle of the hill... apparently (according to Let's Go travel guide), that cafe is the most scenic spot to relax in Prague. Noted!

We stepped off the cable car and entered the most breathtaking rose garden. It was like the fragrance wafting from the flowers were continuously punching you in the face, making you delirious. Instead fields of gold, you could see fields of red, orange, yellow, pink, purple, white... for at least 100 yards each way. I have never seen roses in so many colors/shapes/types EVER. We sat there for a good hour, munching on tea and biscuits. It was no wonder that people were totally making out like animals in heat on the benches.

After we were done soaking up all the vibrant colors, my mom and I decided to walk down Petrin Hill instead of taking the cable car. It was a good idea, because the park was very well-maintained and you could see the Prague skyline easily through the tree boughs. We got to the cafe in the park, ordered a Pilsner and cappuccino, and fully accepted the fact that unlike the day before... we were having a grand ole time in Prague. :)

That was pretty much all there was left to see in Mala Strana, so we decided to cross over to the eastern side again and do some mindless shopping before our official farewell dinner with our tour group.

A thought-evoking tank/bulldozer mobius strip mural.

The farewell dinner was freaking off the hook, plus I got to play an instrument! Okay, it was only a clothes washer board + wooden spoon, but percussions are important in a band!!! My mom was a total show-off as usual and danced with all the old men. What a minx. The food was amazing, or at least I thought it was by the Nth glass of wine. A happy buzzed swirly way to cap off the tour -- I was truly sorry to say goodbye to all my 30 new adopted grandparents.

THANK YOU MOM

I had a blast!

And I'm so glad I did it with you.

:)